Once again we return to a group stage for the round of thirty-two. Each group consists of four players; the group selection event determines their placement in each group. Each group must go through a double elimination format to determine which players will advance and which players are eliminated. If a player can get two wins before he gets two losses, then he advances to the next round. If he can’t, then he is eliminated. Two players from each group of four will have the chance to continue to fight for this season’s title.

The number of remaining competitors has been halved as the tournament continues into the Round of 16. Beginning with this round, the tournament becomes single elimination. The players who finished first out of their groups last round will be paired against a player that finished in second. Each pair of players will play a best-of-three match to determine not only who will advance to the next round, but who will earn seeds into the following MSL.

Thumbs DownSince there are four maps, there will be one map in each best-of-three match that will not be played. The players who finished first out of their group are given the opportunity to give a “thumbs down” to one of the maps. What this means is that the player will get to choose one of the four maps that he will not have to play on during this round. This allows the player the advantage of getting to remove a map that does not fit his play style or that he thinks may be imbalanced in a particular match-up.

MBC's new format for the Ro8 has entered its second season. The brackets from the Ro16 have been discontinued, and the matchups are now determined by KeSPA ranking. The matchups are a Bo5 format, with both players able to thumb down maps they do not want to see played twice.

On November 11 2009 18:32 tossinYoSalad wrote:protoss might only have 8 representers, but they all kickass (except guemchi.. wtf.. guemchi?!)

toss winning msl would give a big fuck you to the season of the swarm at the very least .

dude guemchi is next bonjwa

also i am a zerg user and lover but i feel like having a terran winning lol .. feels like ages since a terran won an individual league.

Graphicssavior[gm] : What is a “yawn” rape ;; Masumune - It was the year of the pig for those fucking defilers. Chill - A clinic you say? okum: SC without Korean yelling is like porn without sex. konamix: HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOMMY!

What's up with zergs having double the number of players of the other races? (Edit: and in both Starleagues to boot)I thought swarm season was last season...I hope we do not see another two ZvZ finals in the same season again. I'm not one of the ZvZ haters, but I'd rather watch some ZvP or ZvT.

On November 12 2009 01:25 JohnBall wrote:What's up with zergs having double the number of players of the other races? (Edit: and in both Starleagues to boot)I thought swarm season was last season...I hope we do not see another two ZvZ finals in the same season again. I'm not one of the ZvZ haters, but I'd rather watch some ZvP or ZvT.